Moniteau's Kyle Armagost races down the field on his way to a touchdown in the District 9 Class AA title game Friday night at Clarion University's Memorial Stadium.

CLARION — He was the old Kyle Armagost. The scrambling Kyle Armagost. The dangerous Kyle Armagost.

And it felt good.

For the first time since the Moniteau senior quarterback sprained his right knee in win against Clarion late in the second game of the season, he had that explosiveness in the running game and the ability to make pass rushers miss in and out of the pocket.

Armagost rushed 21 times for 129 yards and three touchdowns and bought time with his legs for three key completions to help the Warriors to their first-ever District 9 championship in a 26-12 win over Karns City Friday night at Clarion University.

“It's still bothering me,” Armagost said of his tender knee. “But, you know what, if I have to do it, I'll do it. When I first got hurt, I was hesitant to run full speed and test it, but now I feel a lot better.”

The week after the injury, Armagost sat in the pocket and threw for 392 yards against Redbank Valley.

In hindsight, Armagost said the injury made him a better passer.

“I'd like to say no, but with the victories we've had, I'd have to say yes,” Armagost said. “It may have been a little different if I didn't get hurt — I probably would have run the ball a lot more — but these things happen for a reason.”

Still, Armagost went over 1,000 yards rushing for the season in the win over the Gremlins.

Moniteau coach Jeff Campbell said he and the coaching staff were holding Armagost back throughout the season to protect the knee.

All that went out the window in the D-9 title game.

“For weeks we've had the handcuffs on him for running the ball so much because we were worried about his knee,” Campbell said. “But this is the D-9 championship. We cut him loose.”

Armagost hooked up with Brayden McCorry on a 46-yard pass play in the third quarter by buying time with his feet.

That set up Armagost's 3-yard TD run that gave Moniteau a 19-6 lead.

“It was pure backyard football stuff,” Armagost said. “We do it in practice. I run around in practice and the receivers have to come back for the ball. It's something we always work on. You never know when you are going to need it.”

With a district championship under his belt, Kyle Armagost now has something to hang over the head of his elder brother, Tyler Armagost, who was the quarterback for the Warriors, but could never capture a district crown.

“He told me if I didn't win it he was going to beat the (stuffing) out of me,” Kyle said of Tyler. “I wish he could have been here to see it.”